City of Lies
by Lace Ashdown
Summary: For a quarter century the Shadow World have finally lived in peace. The Dark War was over and Sebastian was dead. Little did they know, he left a little payback for the world before his death. You think it's over? Think again. WARNING: Major spoilers to those who haven't read the entire Mortal Instruments Series yet. Enjoy!
1. Prologue

**PROLOGUE:**

Books &amp; Cases was unusually jam-packed that afternoon. For a bookstore in New York, it was indeed surprising that people would even give it second glance, much less enter the store. The general visitors were mostly comprised of women: teens to mid-forties.

Lately, there had been a trilogy of books that suddenly made more women interested in reading. That being because it had very, very, very intimate contents. Unknown to the busy crowd, an impatient sigh escaped someone's lips in the far back of the store.

Solitude _n_. the quality or state of being alone or remote from society.

Alix Barrett read the word over and over in her mind. She was deeply in love with its meaning. In fact, she had it scribbled on her hard bound journal countless times.

Bloody red hair fell on her note, blocking her view from her writings. To some people, her hair was completely unnatural, its shade only Manic Panic can provide. But unbeknownst to them, she was born with it. She was part fey after all.

"Excuse me, can you please move aside?" a woman said acidly, indicating Alix's crossed ankles blocking the entire path through the aisle.

She was seated comfortably at the back of the store for almost an hour and a half but no one bothered her up until now. With glittering icy blue eyes, she glared at the woman and felt a tinge of satisfaction when she saw her flinch.

"I apologize," she said in haughty British accent, "I'm afraid I didn't quite catch that,"

The woman, despite being the one who was looking down, seemed like she was about to pee herself in fear. Alix smiled but it didn't reach her eyes. She looked venomous, like her late father, or probably even more sinister than him if that's possible.

_Begone._ She commanded with her mind.

_Scram._

_Go!_

With a single bat of her eyelashes, the woman staggered back, confused. Then, almost as if she forgot something cooking in her kitchen, the woman turned around and ran away in a dash.

* * *

"You seem upset, Your Highness,"

Alix looked up from her lap. She went to Central Park out of sheer boredom but now she wasn't quite sure if her decision was right.

Mikhail remained standing in front of her, his stance bearing the warrior that he never had the chance to become. He was her appointed guard, even though she often escaped from him.

"Not upset," Alix replied, "Infuriated,"

The male fae chuckled at her words which gained him a deathly glare. The girl hated being made fun of, especially by a rank lower than her. Well, maybe not lower. But definitely not higher either.

She patted the space beside her, gesturing for her companion to sit. The would-have-been warrior frowned in confusion, Alix seldomly asked him to sit down beside her - even though they partly shared the same blood. So he sat down obediently, like the good warrior he should have been. Mikhail laughed darkly in his head. His father must have been so proud.

Alix bore her eyes to his. They had the same shade of icy blue irises - the only trait they shared.

"I hate mundanes," she then muttered, breaking eye contact, "I despise them so much, I want to annihilate their entire race. I wish demons would kill them all. Better yet, I wish I could kill them all! Starting with the people here in this park-"

Mikhail raised a thick brow. "I'm afraid I cannot let you do that, Your Highness,"

With a sharp blue glare, Alix turned back to the fey, her figure ready to pounce on him should he pick a wrong word to say.

"And why is that?" she demanded.

He sighed, growing tired of her childish antics. "You know why," he said, eyeing the general direction of The Institute.

"That Herondale boy and his petty friends?" she laughed manically, "They don't even know of my existence!"

Even though he was the one who suggested it, upon hearing that name, Mikhail immediately tensed up. He hated the boy. No. He loathed him. He could almost see him marching up to them, with a look much more arrogant than his father's, and remind them of what the Fair Folk had become after the Dark War, of how powerless they were now.

Alix grinned at him - the kind that said she had something terrible up her sleeves - and leaned down to whisper in his ear.

"Don't tell mother,"

Mikhail shivered. Something was telling him what she was going to say wasn't a good idea.

"But I think it's about time they know,"

* * *

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

**Lo and behold! I have made another work. To give you more insight, this story occurs twenty-five years immediately after the Dark War. WARNING: If you haven't read the entire Mortal Instruments Series yet, do not read this story. I repeat: DO NOT READ THIS STORY. However, if you do not mind spoilers then, I suppose you can just carry on.**

**Going back, this story happens twenty-five years after the war and the world of shadowhunters have become peaceful once again (with just teensy bit of demons every now and then). Or is it? *insert manic laughter here***

**With all the love for writing,**

**Lace Ashdown**


	2. We Forget the Dead but Not Their Deeds

**CHAPTER 1:**

It was quiet in The Institute. It had been peaceful in The Institute for quite a long while now. And it's placid silence was something Alec Lightwood and his lover, Magnus Bane, enjoyed. Their time, however, was cut short when all of a sudden, a door slammed shut, shattering whatever tiny bubble it was they were both in. Magnus playfully threatened to jinx the source of the noise when it was suddenly followed by the telltale sound of angel blades being picked up.

"Uncle Alec!" a voice called not too far from the drawing room where he and Magnus was cozily snuggled, "Max and I'll go out for a bit!"

Alec shook his head with a small smile on his face and called back, "Be sure to tell your father!"

Magnus chuckled, gently pulling him back on the couch. Alec turned on him and his glitter-lined eyes with a questioning stare.

The warlock shrugged. "You know he likes to do as he pleases and there's nothing we can do to change his mind," he pulled Alec closer to him with a smile, "Besides, they're both old enough to be on their own,"

"Izzy will be so mad," Alec said but relaxed against Magnus, anyway.

"Why will I be so mad?"

Isabelle was standing in the doorway behind them, her hand on her hip and her brow lifted up. She was in her black gear with her long, black hair in a high ponytail, her whip possibly hidden somewhere in her outfit. She looked deceptively young but her voice remained mother-like, nevertheless.

"What is it, Alec?" Izzy repeated.

Alec and Magnus turned to look at her. Then, it was Alec who first stood up, facing her properly. "They're already old enough, anyway." he said, borrowing Magnus' words earlier, "And it's not like there's more trouble in the city than before-"

His sister's eyes widened in realization. "Did you let Van take Maddox again?"

"Well," Magnus draped his arm over the backrest of the couch to see Isabelle easier, "Technically, they didn't ask for permission. So, Alec didn't actually _let _them," he reasoned.

But Isabelle was already gone. She marched down the training room with a foul expression on her face. Before she got back to The Institute, she was with Lily, the Head of the New York Vampire Clan. The things there that she attended to were not very pretty. She didn't need even more things to worry about right now.

Metals clashed and forceful grunts echoed outside the training room's door. There was possibly some sort of practice going on but it did not stop her from barging in.

Simon and Jace were in the middle of a sword fight when she entered, making Simon turn to her and lose his focus. Jace took it as an opportunity and slid his leg under Simon, making him fall on his butt. He pointed the tip of his sword at Simon's chin and smirked.

"What?" Jace asked, barely out of breath.

Isabelle noticed Clary seated on the window sill, a sketchbook in hand, possibly drawing another scenery from Idris. She'd been missing Jocelyn lately but work in The Institute didn't give her the chance to visit.

Jace reached down to help Simon up. "What happened?" Simon asked.

His wife looked away from Clary and turned to Jace but not before stepping beside Simon.

"Your son-"

Clary immediately stood up, cleared the wistful state she was in and turned to Isabelle. "What happened to Van?"

"He and Maddox went out,"

Jace sheathed his sword, raising a brow. "I don't see a problem with that,"

"Well, I do!" Isabelle snapped, "Van loves to get in trouble too much - even more than you. And I'm not in the business of letting my son get in trouble because of him,"

Jace laughed incredulously, like what she was saying made no sense at all. "Please, Maddox hardly does anything. Literally."

Clary crossed the room and joined the mini circle, her brows etched in a frown. She knew Isabelle meant well but it did not make the sting any less painful. Van was definitely - if not more than - like Jace when he was his age. His self-confidence was borderline arrogance and he usually did whatever it was that he wanted but it did not mean he was not a good kid.

"Besides, I doubt there's much to do out there," Jace added, being his usual cocky self.

Isabelle looked like she was ready to snap his neck when Simon suddenly cleared his throat. Everybody in the room turned to him.

"What?" he awkwardly asked.

With an annoyed sigh, Isabelle turned to her husband, positively thinking why the heck did she marry that guy. "Well, don't you have anything to say?"

An even more awkward silence followed as everyone stared at Simon and waited for his answer.

"Uhh...OW!" Simon yelped after Isabelle swatted his arm. "What was that for?"

"Why aren't you saying anything?"

Simon looked slightly indignant. "I really had nothing left to say! Jace is right. The boys need to go out once in a while,"

Isabelle's face flushed red but she said nothing. Simon was about to reach out for her but then, she suddenly stormed off.

* * *

Alix thought it was so cliché that the sign outside the Pandemonium looked like it was spelling DEMON out. It was like tempting shadowhunters and demons both. But the thing was, after the Dark War, the club was closed down for a few years and then was bought by a mundane from the original owner and was ressurected. Now it was just a normal night club like every club there was in New York. There were no secret clubs for demons anymore. Not for them, not for downworlders. There was no exclusive place for them anymore.

In Pandemonium, however, she was a VIP and there, she got exclusive treatment from the staff.

With a small wave at the bouncer in front, she was able to come inside right away. Deafening music blasted her face. The lazer lights flashed. There were bodies grinding, bouncing, sweating, clinging. It was a little cold now, but then, she would probably feel the heat later.

Alix flipped her hair away from her leather jacket. She was wearing her red hair in a hairstyle that mundanes called mermaid braid and as soon as she stepped inside the club, girls had been asking her about it.

_Mundanes. _She condescendingly thought._ They always copy every pretty thing they see._

She went up the stairs and to her usual spot in the second floor, looking down on the mundanes dancing away their lives. A little earlier that month, she knew she must've spotted two shadowhunters - both males - on the dance floor. But instead of seeing them in their usual weapon-clad get up, they were in their - what Alix assumed - normal club clothes.

Now, she was hoping to see them again. And probably talk to them, too.

"I take it you're alone?"

Alix turned to the sound of the voice, surprised that someone even had the guts to come near her.

She came face to face with a strikingly handsome young man, possibly around her age. The club lights danced around his fair hair as he leaned closer to her, waiting for an answer.

The boy looked strangely familiar, yet she couldn't put her mind on it. So, she tentatively smiled. "Yes,"

A bright smile reflected hers as he gestured for her to come down. She looked down on the dance floor. The crowd had suddenly doubled up and their movements became wilder, more fun. Then, she looked back at the boy in front of her. Her eyes widened in surprise, only then did she realize why he looked familiar.

* * *

"How did the meeting go?" Jocelyn asked Luke while she set the table.

There had been an emergency Clave meeting earlier that day. Although, nobody knew what was talked about there other than the people who were actually called to the meeting. Something felt off with all that. And after the Dark War, even two and a half decades later, Alicante was still in its toes for possible trouble.

Luke ran his fingers through his hair, as if weighing what to tell his wife. "We received a report that Meliorn was spotted in the forests near Lake Lyn,"

Jocelyn frowned. "But Meliorn is long-"

"Dead?" Luke offered. "Yes, that, he is. It could be anyone who just looked like him. The strange thing is that the witnesses swore they saw him wielding a faerie weapon."

It was long ago since the fairfolk had been stripped of their army and weaponry. The shadowhunters, grieved by their loss in the war, made sure their armories were sweeped clean. And all confiscated weapons were thrown into a hearth. Nobody gambled making any more weapons for fear of being killed. So, pressumably, it was impossible to find any faerie weapon in the present.

"Although, it is also possible that they only got confused. They were in the forest, after all," Luke said.

Jocelyn moved to him, reading his mind. "But you're still sending someone to the Seelie Court to investigate?"

He nodded.

"And that's who?"

Luke bit his lip.

"They wanted it to be Clary,"

* * *

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

**This is still in experimental status. If you guys like it, I'll carry on. If not, then, I'll still carry on. Haha. Lemme know what you think.**

**Anyway, I'm taking one-shot requests! Just PM me :)**

**Don't forget to review!**

_**With all the love for writing,**_

**Lace Ashdown**


	3. With Foxes We Must Play the Fox

**CHAPTER 2:**

Alix glided down the stairs, with the handsome boy in front of her. She smiled to herself as they went. The boy turned back, offering his arm to her. The runes that circled his arm looked like swirly tattoos in the dark but even upstairs, Alix was able to decipher them clearly. She lifted a brow. It was almost too easy.

She took it, just as he leaned towards her ear. "I'm Van, by the way," he said.

The way his voice lifted was musical and if Alix was a mundane herself, she'd be enthralled by this boy. She noted that he had a little accent to him, possibly from his father.

"My name is Alix," she whispered back.

Van's mouth lifted on one side, looking pleased. He took her hand and dragged her to the dance floor.

* * *

When Van said they were going out, Maddox didn't think they were _actually going out. _He thought they were going to hunt demons but apparently , Van had other things in his mind.

Now, he was standing silently on the sides of the club, completely bored. He never really understood why mundanes had to go to things as such. What was it that they enjoyed in noisy places like this? And how would anyone be comfortable grinding their bodies against other people?

He rolled his eyes at the thought. Van never had a problen with that. In fact, he seemed to enjoy it more than he should. Maddox was positive that he would never understand that.

He glanced back to the way they came in. The possibility of demon activity outside made his hands itch. He wanted to fight demons. He wanted to slaughter them all.

Maddox took a calming breath and tried to give it a few more minutes. If Van decided to come back for him, then he'd stay. Otherwise, he was out of there.

* * *

"I'd like you to meet my friend," Van whispered to her after a few songs of dancing.

Alix placed a well-rehearsed smile on her face and said, "Okay,"

The boy smirked and swiftly slid past the wall of grinding bodies with her. She noticed how the other girls looked at him. They were enchanted, mesmerized. She smothered a snigger. It was no shock to her. He had the blood of an angel in his veins, after all.

She raised an eyebrow at a skanky blonde eyeing Van, clearly wanting to flirt with him. Not that she was claiming him hers, she just simply enjoyed the look of disappointment on her pathetic face. The blonde backed away, a hideous pout distorting her unattractive features.

Van tugged at her hand, making her look away from the skank and to the boy clad in black staring back at her. She felt Van's hand slide from hers as he moved closer to introduce them. He tapped the boy on the shoulder and smirked.

"Alice, this is Maddox. Maddox, Alice," He shouted over the noise but there was really no need to. Alix could clearly hear what people in the club were saying. Especially when said people mispronounced her name.

"I'm gonna go get some drinks!" Van announced and then left, not even waiting for anyone to answer.

Alix's lips curled into a small, coy smile. "Hi Maddox. It's Alix, by the way - with an X,"

Maddox raised a brow. "I'd rather people call me Max. You should probably do the same,"

His voice was low but loud enough to be understood. Alix internally assessed the boy next to her. He had dark hair and the straightest jawline she had ever seen. It was as sharp as his eyes, too.

She giggled.

"Okay, Max,"

* * *

"This is ludicrous," Jace said with all the condescending tone he could muster.

Clary sighed as she shrugged on her shadowhunter clothes. She pulled her wild red hair up in a bun and faced her husband.

"It's not like I'm being sent to war,"

"Yeah, but-"

Whatever it was he was going to say, Clary had cut him off with a kiss. When she pulled back, she was smiling.

"I'll be back before you know it,"

* * *

Maddox had asked - or more like ordered - Alix to go out. Slightly annoyed buy willing to play along, she followed. Now they were at the back of Pandemonium, silently looking at a distance. They were seated on some sort of a bench that some people randomly put there. Alix laughed to herself, she would never understand mundanes.

The street was completely deserted. Well, no surprise there, it was already three 'o clock. Mundanes would've thought that silence during the so-called demoning hour was something to be afraid of but right now the silence was strangely calming, even though she knew who the boy was supposed to be.

A harsh wind suddenly blew against them and Alix's bloody red hair flew away, some of its strands escaping from her braid.

She reached up to tuck her hair behind her ear and when she looked back at Maddox, he was staring hard at her, the muscles between his brows forming a deep V.

"What?" Alix asked.

Maddox shook his head, as if he wanted himself out of a trance. "I apologize for staring. It's just that you and my father's bestfriend look so much alike."

This made Alix raise her brow. "Really?"

"You both have this strangely beautiful hair color, though yours look darker than hers," Maddox broke eye contact, like it was nothing.

Alix made a noise that sounded like a cross between a giggle and a gasp. "So you think I'm beautiful, huh?" she asked.

"I-"

"You kids!" Van suddenly yelled from the back door, "I turn my back one minute and when I get back you're already gone,"

His words were chiding but his tone suggested a very different meaning. He eyed Maddox teasingly, like they shared a joke only the two of them knew.

Maddox raised a browas he stood from the bench. "I suppose we're done for the night?" he asked Van, clearly impatient.

Alix looked at Maddox but he had his back turned to her. So, she picked up her coat from the bench and plastered an apologetic smile at Van.

"As much as I wanted to have more fun with you two, I'm afraid I have to get going," she said as she stood, "Bye!" and then she was gone.

After a while, Van nudged Maddox playfully.

"So what you kids up to, huh?" he asked, grinning.

Maddox faced him as they walked home. "It's actually none of your bloody business,"

Van chuckled. "So you like this girl, huh?"

"Again, none of your bloody business, mate,"

* * *

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

**Yes, yes. I know it's short. I apologize. Next update will be much longer. Promise! Anyway, please leave a review and let me know what you think of the story so far. xx**

**With all the love for writing,**

**Lace Ashdown**


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